Research interests

The archaeology of the island of Sicily, especially from Hellenistic to early Byzantine; the Roman Empire in west, including Britain, Gaul, Germany and Africa; Roman iconography; Greek, Roman and early Byzantine mosaics; Roman construction techniques; Roman material culture

Geographical areas

The focus of my research throughout my entire career has been Sicily, but I have as well published on aspects of the archaeology of Italy, Britain, Germany and Africa. I have also travelled extensively throughout the former Roman Empire, studying Greek and Roman archaeological material, most recently in Albania.

Background

After a BA in what used to be called Literae Humaniores, and a DPhil, both in Oxford (where I was Thomas Whitcombe Greene Scholar in Classical Archaeology), I taught at Universities in Dublin (where I was a Fellow of Trinity College), Nottingham, and most recently Vancouver, where I am an Emeritus Professor of the University of British Columbia. I have been Visiting Professor at McMaster University, Balsdon Fellow at the British School at Rome, Visiting Fellow at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles, Dalrymple Lecturer in Archaeology at Glasgow, and Byvanck Lecturer at the National Museum of Leiden. I am a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

Current research

I am currently working on a number of Sicilian projects, as well as some shorter pieces on a range of topics, from the DNA of ancient horses, through villa chronology and a Pompeian mosaic, to late Roman chamber pots.